Christianity in Cinema: Lutherans Go to the Movies Hollywood deals in stories. They tell tales. Interesting characters, stunning cinematography, and cleverly composed dialogue all combine to produce 120+ minutes of entertaining film, for which you are willing to shell out $12 a seat to watch in ultra high-def. Of course, some movies are more worthwhile than others. Some you are willing to splurge and see in the theater. Others you’ll wait for the DVD.

Probably a good number of them don’t attract your interest at all. I suppose much of it depends on one’s taste and personality. In the end a movie is a commodity. It is mass marketed and engineered to garner the highest possible income from its target audience. Don’t get me wrong, I like movies. Anyone who has ever attended a Bible study from me knows from my obscure references that I like movies. I am an audio-visual learner. Movies make an impression on me. Good movies make a good impression. And great ones become for me an object lesson to which I may continually refer when trying to emphasize a point; i.e. The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the new Hobbit series speak concerning Christianity in many and various ways and offer opportunities for Christians to engage in dialogue, even spurning conversation with non-Christians. When Hollywood purposefully tells Christian stories, it is almost as if they are challenging Christians to engage in public discourse with one another, and especially, the culture. By “Christian stories,” I don’t mean Christian themed movies such as the Chronicles of Narnia series, the previously mentioned books-to-movies by J.R.R. Tolkien, or even movies with Christian motifs such as the Matrix trilogy or the various super-hero genres. No, I am speaking of Hollywood attempting to tell specific Christian stories, that is, Biblical accounts. We have seen this attempted in several forms for the small screen. Last summer’s The Bible mini-series which aired on The History Channel is such an example. Billed as an epic television event with such big-name collaborators as Joel Osteen and Rich Warren, The Bible attempted to compress 6,000 years of history in 66 canonical books into ten hours of programming. Leaving aside actors’ performances and directorial choices, the highly touted mini-series proved to be less than engaging. It failed to capture the depth of the Scriptural narratives in its plaster-paper telling of Biblical accounts. It was theologically shallow, which, considering the panel of religious advisors to the series, I am not surprised. At times it was simply false. While it was not nearly as atrocious as the Jon Voigt/Noah’s Ark debacle, it certainly did not measure up to the acclaim of The Passion of the Christ or even the Charlton Heston classic The Ten Commandments. The lack-luster mini-series will, in part, be turned into a big screen debut, however. Son of God is scheduled to be released in February. It reports to take scenes from The Bible mini-series, add some previously unseen material, and tell the story of Jesus, from birth through His crucifixion and resurrection. It is billed as “The story of Jesus for a whole new generation”1 Less than a month later, in March of 2014, Noah, starring Russell Crowe will premiere. “If you were expecting a Biblically faithful retelling of the story of the greatest mariner in history and a tale of redemption and obedience to God you’ll be sorely disappointed,”2 says Brian Godawa. Ridley Scott, who worked with Crowe on Gladiator, is working on a retelling of Moses. What some are calling a prequel to Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, is the December 2013 release of Mary Mother of Christ. The script was written by the same author. As if these were not enough, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson is set to play Goliath, while Brad Pitt is in development to play Pontius Pilate. How is a Christian to react to all this? Have the tides turned in favor of Christianity? Whereas once the movie industry seemed to have it if out for Christianity and the Christian worldview, is this new docket of films a portent of the future in cinema? Is Christianity coming en vogue? Is Hollywood converting? Hardly. They know a good story when they hear one. They know that movies based on the Bible have a built in audience. When talent fades, the industry is desperate for a surge, and literarily Scripture does make for good big-screen action. Scripture intersects with everything we think, say, and do. This includes our movie and media consumption. Your Christian worldview affects how you view your life. Your life does not belong to you. You are not your own. Set your mind on this that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory (Col 3:2-4). How is a Christian to navigate these movies, let alone the culture as a whole? Be cautious. Exercise judgment. Use your sanctified Christian wisdom. Be discerning. There is a line between piety and entertainment. It is unlikely I will see most of these in the theaters, but I will probably watch them eventually. It is helpful to do so, even if at times they prove to be nauseatingly poor. Even bad movies are talked about in the staff kitchen. But as with most literature-to-film productions, the book (i.e. The Holy Bible) is still better. I will be thoroughly impressed if the theology of any of these films is orthodox and catholic. Still further, if Jesus is painted in His true colors, as the pages of Sacred Writ give evidence. He claimed to be the Son of God. He substantiated His claim with a miracle the world has never seen yet refuses to accept: His resurrection from the dead! This is a reality deeper than one that could ever be portrayed on the silver screen. Those images are only two dimensional (unless you go to the IMAX). The true story of Jesus Christ - the Son of God, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered and died and rose again from the dead for us sinners - that is better and more real than any scripted Hollywood tale, even if it is lifted from Christian Scripture. And in that we have a story better than any other. It sounds to good to be true. In a way it is. The Gospel is always good news. It is always unexpected; always exciting. And it doesn’t cost a $12 ticket! Your unworthy servant, Pastor Mierow